Tag Archives: concealer

Sorry for the lack of posts this past week. It has been kind of crazy at work trying to meet a self-imposed deadline (which I’m not sure I’ll be able to meet…) but anyway, moving on to less boring stuff…

I decided about a week ago that with this crazy cold weather we are having here in London my skin looked a bit dry with the mineral powder that I normally use as make up base (from Physician’s Formula, really like it otherwise).

Since I don’t really like foundation (terrible memories from my teens when I was breaking out like crazy although probably formulas have advanced in the few decades that have gone by…) and I don’t like anything that feels “heavy” on my skin I decide to try something that is between a tinted moisturizer and a foundation from Neutrogena:

I bought this in the US, where they really have a whole range of Neutrogena products. I know the from this brand are recommended all the time by dermatologist and I also like most of their make up range.

I really like the way it looks on my skin, very natural while giving some color. And love the fact that it doesn’t turn super shiny over the hours. Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t stay put matte at all but it does not over shine.

I top this with a Revlon powder that is also very light but gives a very nice finish.

Revlon PhotoReady

This color is right at tis time of the year but I think whenever I start using fake tan again (yeah , I ended up embracing the pale …) will probably have to go one shade darker. It looks a tiny little bit shimmery on the pan but not really that much when applied to skin.

I finish up the whole thing by applying some bronzer from NYC (I don’t fake tan anymore but that doesn’t mean I want to look like snow white!).

My second great recent discovery has been applying the undereye concealer ( from ELF studio range) once I’ve applied the foundation/tinted moisturizer. I was getting fed up of my concealer getting all patchy and dry under my eyes at the end of the day which just accentuated my lines there even more, obviously not the effect I was looking for to start with…

Now it stays put very nicely, not patchy AT ALL!

So the order of application now is: foundation then powder then concealer then eye primer. To be honest I apply a No7 green primer before the foundation but this I don’t extend under the eyes.

I’ve also started mixing a bit of the highlighter part of the concealer with the actual concealer to give a lighter touch and I like the result as well.

So after all the complaining about not being any significant offers from ELF UK for regular customers (like me!) and finding out that some offers are indeed posted on their Facebook page I went ahead and used a couple of FREE SHIPPING codes that went out early this month.

This is what I bought:

ELF November Haul

Cream eyeliner in Purple and coffee

They come with a small brush (it appears huge in the picture on their website but is actually quite small)

It’s true that it doesn’t budge, it stays put all day long. However it is quite dry do you have to apply it quite fast. It is definitely hard for me to apply with the brush provided so I’ve tried other (longer brushes that I owe). For me it is easier to apply it with a bent liner brush.

I find the purple is more pigmented than the coffee. Didn’t buy black because it’s permanently sold out and anyway, I tend to use purple or brown much more often, anyway.

Hypershine Lip Gloss in Flirt and Berry Cherry

ELF Lip glosses

I also owe this in “Cloud Nine” which is basically a clear gloss with a wonderful coconut smell.

These colors are more pigmented but still very sheer, Flirt goes towards the pink and Berry Cherry is a bit mauveish. Both are indeed very glossy, easy to apply and leave your lips feeling veeeeery smooth. However the taste of these is kind of weird. Definitely don’t like it as much than Cloud Nine but they are great for the price (£1.50).

I did some swatches but they don’t really come out well and true to life in the picture…

Super Glossy LIp Shine Spf 15

I bought it in Mauve Luxe. Definitely the more pigmented of the glosses. It has a nicer smell/taste and also leaves your lips super shiny and smooth.

Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder

I bought it in “Luminance” which is basically just a highlighter.

Very seer with a nice shimmer and not sparkly at all.

Healthy Glow Powder

On my finger

It is actually more transparent and not as yellowish as i shows in the pictures.

Here are some swatches on my hand:

After smudging it

Without smudging it

As you can see no risk of looking like a disco ball with this powder (in fact I’m not sure if it shows that much at all…) but I have been actually using it almost everyday since I got it and al least it looks good when I apply it. Not sure it lasts that long though…

Under eye concealer and highlighter

Bought it in medium. This is quite moisturizing as well and I like the fact that it doesn’t look as cakey as the mineral concealer from Maybelline that I’ve been using these past months.

In the ELF website they syate that “Blends in easily and evenly to provide a smooth and natural finish.”. That is exactly what it does.

Haven’t really tried that much the highlighter so cannot comment that much on it. I would happily buy only the concealer without the highlighter…I’m not sure it adds that much to it, but that is just my opinion.

I also got a bag for my brushes to keep them sorted and well kept when travelling.

Shown with My Sonia Kashuk Powder Brush

It is very flat and will prevent my longer brushes to get stuck in the zips of my other make up bags. And also since it packs flat it won’t take that much space in my always crammed suitcase…

I made an order yesterday for some new Crown brushes. I hope they also fit nicely in this bag!